U.K. Guys Turned Into Surprise Allies

In this op-ed for English newspaper The Guardian, Sunny Hundal writes of a website that just didn’t sit right with him. The premise? Women (mostly) taking photos of (mostly) men and uploading them online. No, no, he’s not talking about Hollaback!, where us women & LGBTQ dare to flip the power by putting the judgmental microscopic lens back where it belongs: our harassers. He was irked that the women on TubeCrush were submitting pictures of men on the subway to rate their cuteness.

I’ll save any judgment about the site and let you share your thoughts in the comments, but I will give kudos to Hundal for not letting himself get worked up into a frenzy about it, as he seemed to realize that the power dynamics between women and men prevent this site from becoming a dangerous or illegal one, creepy or not.

But all this raises a few issues. First, women have to put up with far worse. As Hanna pointed out, “there are loads of sites out there about women. Upskirt shots, no less. No one gets arrested”. Soph said the comparison was ridiculous: “Men get photos taken of them and are whinging about it. No offence but I get stared at/talked to/touched all the time by men.”

Maybe those offended by the site will find a connection between their response and a proper London holla back!